Points and Penguins

  Having taught world history for many years we were both excited to have the opportunity to see what the Europeans of the 15th century considered the end of the world. Named the Cape of Storms when Bartolomeu Dias discovered there was an end to Africa, it was renamed the Cape of Good Hope by King John II of Portugal. He thought the name change promoted a more encouraging image for future exploration. And so we rented a car to drive to the place where the Portuguese established an ocean route to Asia.

  Even for us it is not all about history. On the way we stopped at Boulders Beach to see the colony of African penguins. These birds are smaller than many of their Antarctic cousins but share many of the same characteristics: black and white, funny walk, great swimmers. We found many of them nesting in the sand either with a newly hatched chick or sitting on an egg. These penguins are on the endangered list for a number of reasons including their own behaviors.  They nest in the open under the hot sun, abandoning the egg if a mate takes too long to return from the ocean. Both egg and chick ar susceptible to sea gulls; we watched a gull swoop down and steal an egg away from a distracted parent. Some years none of the chicks survive as parents stop caring for them when the chicks are about two months old. Adult penguins are also vulnerable especially when they molt. During the 15 day process of losing old feathers as new ones grow in the penguins can't swim. They stand at the edge of the water and hope to not be attacked by a gull or another larger bird or to starve to death because they didn't eat enough prior to the molt.

  This colony at least has some protection from threats by humans. Boardwalks take you up and around the beach, close enough to see but not to touch. Fences surround the area to provide extra protection but the penguins themselves choose to live dangerously. They have been known to waddle up hills, through the fences and onto the road. Signs in the area warn drivers of possible penguin crossing.

  As we continued on to Cape point we saw new signs warning us this time of baboons in the road. Baboons! We weren't on safari yet here amid beach front houses the animals lived in the nearby hills.

  After about an hour we reached Cape Point, part of Table Mountain National Park. We drove through the park to the old lighthouse at the point, built in the 1850’s to warn passing ships of the dangerous rocky coast. Unfortunately the lighthouse sat too high and was either hidden by

clouds or gave the impression that the coast was safe to approach. A new light house was built in 1911.

 The old lighthouse sits about a kilometer up a rocky cliff. Although a funicular is available to ride to the top we chose to hike. The distance wasn't bad but the path was quite steep. Periodic stops  offered breathtaking views of the coast. We even saw a few surfers who had carried their boards down cliffs to catch some waves an an isolated beach.

  What goes up must come down. After reaching the summit and taking the requisite selfie we began our descent. On our way up we had seen signs cautioning us about baboons as well as physical evidence that the animals had recently been on the path (phew).  Upon reaching the visitors center at the bottom of the hill, a baboon crossed right in front of us as if we didn't exist. We followed him, along with many others, as he nonchalantly crossed the parking lot to sit on a wall overlooking the ocean; apparently oblivious to the small commotion he was causing.

  We moved on to our ultimate destination of the day. Like Dias our journey ended at the Cape of Good Hope.  While the rocky coast was no place to land a ship, let alone settle there, it was as King John II had named it; a place of hope for bringing together goods and ideas from Europe and Asia by way of the sea.